Improvement in plastering-trowels



UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

ELBRIDGE G. HOWE, OF MILLBURY, MASSACHUSETTS.

IMPROVEMENT IN PLASTERlNG-TROWELS.

Specication forming part of Letters Patent No. 38,0441, dated March 31, 1863.

To @ZZ whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, ELBRIDGE. G. Hown, of Millbury, in the county of Worcester and State of Massachusetts, have invented a new and Improved Plasterin g-Trowel for the Use of Masons; and I do hereby declare that the following is a full, clear, and exact description of the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, making a part of this specification, in Which- Figure 1 is a side view of my invention; Fig. 2, a transverse vertical section of the saine, taken in the line :n zr, Fig. 3. Fig. 3 is plan or top view ot' the same with the handle detached.

Similar letters ot' reference indicate correspondin g parts in the several lfigures.

This invention consists in forming the blade of the trowel and the tang on which the wooden handle is fitted out of a single piece of metal, whereby a much stronger and more of durable trowel than those usually made is 0btained, and one which may be used with greater facility and less labor. The ordinary plastering trowels are formed of a rectanguA hir piece of steel-plate having a tang attached by rivets to its upper side. The rivetholes of course require to be countersunk in order that they may receive the rivetheads, and the blade consequently is greatly Weakened thereby, and is liable to break,especially when reduced in thickness by wear.

The object of this invention is to obviate this difficulty, and at the same time obtain a Inore convenient trowel of the kind than has been hitherto manufactured.

To enable those skilled in the art to fully understand and construct my invention,Iwill proceed to describe it.

A represents the blade of the trowel, which is of the usual rectangular form, and is formed either by forging or rolling with a longitudinal ledge, ct, on its upper side, which is slitted longitudinally and then bent to form an upright portion, b, and a horizontal part, c, the latter being parallel with the upper sur face of the blade. The horizontal part c B is fitted as usual.

on the bla-de A of such a height that after it is cut or slitted and the parts b c bent in the desired position, the part a which is left on the upper side of the blade will be suciently large to stiften or strengthen it. By this arrangement it will be seen that all rivets are avoided and a v'ery strong and durable trowel is obtained. The ordinary trowes have the tang c, upright part b, and ledge c made separately, and c is secured to the plate by rivets which pass through the blade from its face side and into the ledge a, the face ofthe blade around the rivet holes being countersunk in order to receive the heads of the rivets. These rivet-holes greatly weaken the blade of the frowel, and they frequently break, especially Wh in somewhat worn.

Another advantage that my invention possesses over the ordinary or common plastering-trowel is that the tang may be nearer the blade A than when the latter is secured to the former by rivets, for when the ledge a is made separately it requires to be thicker than when formed with the blade, in order that the latter may be suiiciently strong, as the blades A are cut out from thin steel plates rolled of uniform thickness throughout, whereas in my invention, in forming the ledge a, the plates are, without any difficulty whatever, made slightly convex on their upper surface, which greatly strengthens the blade and admits of the ledge a being of less height than those made separately from it, and the handle B, therefore, is brought near the blade, and the implement may be operated with greater facility than when the handle is farther oli' from the blade.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, as a new and improved article ot manufacture, is

A plastering-trowel having its blade and shank formed in one piece, as herein shown and described.

ELBRIDGE G. HOWE.

Witnesses:

J Arms LAIRD, R. GAWLEY. 

